Annual Rock for Tots drive addresses ongoing need

From left to right: Marine Corps League members Joe Jankovic, Tim Forbes, and George Smith organize toys collected during the Rock for Tots fundraiser Saturday afternoon at Costanza's Riverside Restaurant in Waterford. (Jeff Couch / The Record)

WATERFORD -- A cacophony of indescribable, yet mirthful sounds was what greeted guests who visited Costanzo's Riverside Restaurant early Saturday afternoon. The source of the audible expressions of glee came courtesy of a dozen or more children interacting with a clown, Frosty the Snowman and Santa Claus.

The trio of holiday celebrities made a special appearance early in the season in support of the annual Toys for Tots campaign, according to Andy Walters, Rock for Tots event coordinator.

"At the time we came up with the idea, I was county commander for the Sons of the American Legion," Walters said. "I chose Toys for Tots as the program we would support that year and came up with the idea to create Rock for Tots, New York as a way to support that program."

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Since its inception in 1999, the annual Rock for Tots - which mirrors similar events in other states - has been hosted by Costanzo's Riverside Restaurant at 405 Hudson River Road and has collected an average of 1,000 toys per year. It takes place on the Saturday before Thanksgiving and benefits the Capital Region's Toys for Tots campaign, he said.

"Rock for Tots benefits not only the Toys for Tots Program, but also the local families who are referred to us by local schools, churches, school-age child care programs and local government, " he said. "We get money donations, too, and use them to purchase toys for those families."

Rock for Tots is about the music, food and spirited beverages almost as much as it is about the toys, though. Local bands begin performing mid-afternoon after the children's party concludes. Admission to the event is $10 and donation of a new, unwrapped toy.

"We have several live bands, dancing, a four-hour buffet and a good time," Walters said. "It's been a very successful event. But probably our best year yet was 2007 when over 500 people attended and we collected about 3,000 toys."

Walters credits that year's unrivaled success to Cat Southern, an Australian Rock/Country singer who learned about Rock for Tots from Walters' website on the Internet and coordinated an appearance in Waterford with a trip she was making to Nashville for a recording session. Southern performed in an Albany bar the night before, was interviewed on WGNA Radio and drummed up not-seen-before support for the toy drive with her Waterford appearance, Walters said.

Though Walters didn't expect the attendance and the number of toys collected this year to match those of 2007, he was optimistic about what the outcome would be.

"Each year the local communities show us overwhelming support," he said. "This year we have six bands performing, including Ohms Law, Big Red Nasty, Johnny Rabb, Prolonged Exposure and Winchester and Young."

Music was slated to kick off at 3 p.m., following a children's Christmas Party from noon to 2:30 p.m. Emcee for the adult-portion of the event was WGNA's Brother Lou Roberts.

By 12:30 p.m., the smaller of two tables designated for toy collection was already filled. Outside, two Toys for Tots trucks were parked in the restaurant's parking lot. But this year, the U.S. Marines who in past years stand at the ready to collect the toys, were not present. Their absence was quickly explained by George Smith, of the U.S. Marine Corps League Electric City Detachment, assistant coordinator of the Toys for Tots Capital Region campaign.

"The Marine Corps Reserve was recently deployed to Connecticut," Smith said. "Bob Becker, our coordinator, stepped up to take over the program."

Smith and his peers have worked with the Toys for Tots Program for the past 15 years but it's traditionally the job of members of the Marine Corps Reserve to oversee local collection. Federal budget cuts made it necessary for the Marines to close their Schenectady base and relocate to Connecticut, Smith said.

Smith and other members from the League's Schenectady and Troy detachments were on the job at Costanzo's for the Rock for Tots event.

Smith noted the importance of such toy drive campaigns and identified the Albany area as being particularly in need of assistance.

"The need hasn't decreased," he said. "Because of the economic situation in this country we've seen a growth in requests from the non-profit organizations that (refer us to eligible families). Most of the toys collected today will be on the Toys for Tots train that runs between Binghamton and Rouse's Point outside Plattsburgh."

The Toys for Tots Capital Region program provides toys to 15 counties. This year's collection goal is 150,000 toys, as compared to 100,000 collected in 2011.

Along with the campaign to raise awareness about prevention of breast cancer and to support its research, Toys for Tots ranks up there as one of the Hein family's most important causes, said Costanzo Riverside Restaurant's General Manager Alan Hein.

He and his parents, Carmella Costanzo Hein and Lee Hein, receive overwhelming support from customers, friends and neighbors and those from surrounding communities each year they host Rock for Tots.

"We have a number of great sponsors for this event and we put a lot of effort into it," Hein said. "This is an extremely worthwhile event. There is still a great need."